The ad was so perfectly timed, and it was such a great offer, I went for it immediately.

Yes, I would be ordering a Pipa’s pizza for dinner.

Although no one in our family had tried Pipa’s pizza before, this offer was a no brainer…it was an irresistible offer. And those are the winning offers, almost every time.

So, armed with my credit card and having agreed on the toppings with the rest of the family, I hit the ‘Shop Now’ button. I was directed to a place to input my address.

Of course, they need the address for a couple of reasons like knowing which store should produce the pizza and then where it should be delivered to.

After entering all of my details, I saw a message saying ‘Online Ordering is Temporarily Unavailable’.

I tried it a couple of times thinking I’d give them the benefit of the doubt. Sometimes little things happen but they get fixed quickly so no harm done.

But, no.

No Pipa’s for us.

I checked it again the next day and got the same message.

One important thing I haven’t mentioned yet…

The special offer was ONLY applicable for orders placed online.

No telephone orders.

No walk-in orders.

Also, there were no asterisked items such as time of day this special would be available, or participating dealers or anything else.

So, no one was going to be able to take advantage of the offer being made on Facebook.

Does this not seem somewhat unproductive?

I don’t think it’s too harsh to ask, “Who is running this operation?”
Why make an offer if no one can use it?

Why bother designing the ad? Why pay for an ad to run?

Of course, mistakes happen. Of course, we must be reasonable but, come on now. How much understanding should there be for people who haven’t tested their ad…for people who went to the expense of creating and placing an ad that is doomed?

That ad cannot be successful…it is impossible.

Pipa’s Pizza very likely has a whole lot of other problems, as well.

So…make sure that you always follow up, check and double check when your money and reputation are at stake. Better still, ensure you have trusted people to do that for you.

There are, indeed, some things that you just have to roll with in retail, as in any other industry…but there are many more things – the most important things – that you must plan, and make happen, if you want profitable results.

‘Some people make things happen, some people watch what happens and some people say ‘what happened?’.

It is not an easy thing to operate a solid, responsible, profitable retail operation.

We don’t need to tell you that it is no longer about filling up a space with products and opening the doors to the customer.

Nowadays, there is much more responsibility than that.

Retailers who don’t pay attention to what is required of them will pay the price.

Want to find out how this retail business owner took his floundering stores from scary, under performing money pits to glorious cash cows and moved into the top position in their category for Biggest Sales Increase overall and for Average Sale Per Customer, in 93% of their locations, in just one year?

And, even more importantly, want to know what else he did to finally start bringing a whole lot more money to the bank every day?

Have we got a story for you…

When I first heard his story, I was wondering what kind of guy this was…then I felt bad for him…then I was happy for him.

What a ride!

Turns out he was amazing, after all.

This was pretty serious stuff.

To get to how this all happened, let’s draw back the velvet curtain and try to understand what was going down in this guy’s stores when he first realized he was losing the battle…losing his clarity of thinking, his previously unshakeable motivation, tons of customers and, most definitely, his money.

I mean, at the rate he was going, he’d be laboring in his stores for most of his waking hours for the rest of his natural born days just to end up living on average income.

And that would have been the best case scenario.

Fair enough if that’s what he wanted… but he didn’t. Far from it!

He started his chain of stores so he could make more than an average living and, once they were turning a profit, he thought he might even have extra money, and time, to enjoy some luxuries with his family and friends and, maybe, put a nest egg away for a rainy day.

He thought he might like a little of the prestige that naturally comes with being the owner of a fine, reputable and successful chain of retail stores.
Oh, and he absolutely lusted after a summer house on a nearby lake – he spoke about it passionately every chance he got.

That was reason enough to want to get a tidy profit out of his business.

And, the sooner, the better.

Although his wife didn’t know a thing about it, he had already had blueprints drawn up.

He had a realtor keeping an eye out for just the right property.

He had even spoken with landscapers and interior designers.

This summer house – on beachfront property – was going to be a thing of beauty.

It was going to be his reward and a gift to his family for all of the hours that he’d worked; missing special occasions, etc.

He just knew that this was going to be the crowning glory … his reason for his life’s work.

He imagined the family gatherings; the long, warm weekends of fun in the sun.

He thought about the boat that would occupy the boathouse…the one that they would all go for relaxing tours in.

He even amused himself by dreaming up names for the boat!

He could picture every tree and flowering shrub that they would painstakingly plant and nurture…and every ripple on the water.

He could sniff the aroma of the steaming coffee and freshly baked pastries sitting on the oak table that graced the porch with the beautiful lacy gingerbread woodwork at every corner.

He could hear the waves crashing against the shore when a storm blew in.

Ah, yes! He knew what he wanted.

For him, all of this sounded not only fabulous, but reasonable as well.

Power to the entrepreneur!

After all, when you are the business owner and your money is on the line, you should reap the rewards…you are the one jumping from the fat in the frying pan into the fire and back again!!

You are the one who is taking all the risks and enduring the hardships.

So, don’t ever lower your expectations just because your stores are not performing the way you imagined they would.

No way. You go for it with gusto, Retail King!

You make those cash registers and POS machines sing …

C-A C-H-I-N-G! C-A C-H-I-N-G! C-A C-H-I-N-G!

Heck, yes!

If it’s not happening for you yet, the questions you should be asking are…

What do I need to do?

and

How do I do it?

OK, let’s roll it back to where this guy’s success story really got started. The very moment, in fact. (cont’d below)Mark the calendar & Save!

Reminder – Get your Webinar Pass for upcoming webinars. Four Webinar Pass is the best value. Buy it here.

OK, back to the story…

It was a moment when he was dog tired, with aching feet and a list of ‘to do’s’ that he hadn’t even started yet

He had just put his hat on his head…the hat that he used to cover the crazed Einstein-like hair style that he was sporting simply because he couldn’t find time to visit his barber.

In other words, he was going home for the night, thoroughly exhausted….again.
A staff member all but accosted him at the door as he was leaving and started blabbering on about something or other.

Hands were flying and papers were being thrust toward our guy, although not in a disrespectful way.

Our guy was trying hard to understand.

He had to actually try to understand because it was so trivial, so unimportant, that instead of really listening he noticeably tilted his head to one side and tried to figure out why this staff member was moving his lips and making noise over something so ridiculous.

He recalled, later, that he had truly been in a trance-like state; unable to comprehend what was going on for at least a few seconds.

He wondered, out loud, what would happen if this person just shut his mouth and took care of whatever it was he was yapping about.

This really was unlike our guy and the employee thought something terrible was about to happen – that the owner was going to faint or have a fit or something along those lines.

Our retail business owner finally spoke again.

He said that he suddenly felt like he had a lot of monkeys on his shoulders.

What? Monkeys? What the heck………..?

Not surprisingly, those nearby thought perhaps he’d finally lost his mind. But, they kept quiet.

You’ve probably heard the expressions about putting the monkey on someone else’ shoulder.

It happens all the time…people easily unload their issues onto someone else – someone who is willing to take them – and until that someone says stop, they just keep taking on more and more.

Some monkeys were heavier than others but there they all were…happily sitting atop his shoulders, weighing him down.

His staff, of course being free of any weight of any monkeys (problems or issues) whatsoever, just went about their business accomplishing very little or nothing at all.

“How on earth did I let this happen? How did I get here?” he exclaimed.

And the answer slammed him.

He felt like he’d been whacked with a blunt instrument.

There’s a game called Whack – a – Mole…and, in this case, it’s Whack – an – Owner.

Not funny, right?

Anyway, at that precise moment, he got it… that he had unwittingly invited every problem, every issue, however important or insignificant, to be his and his alone.

He realized he was completely and totally responsible for their lack of sales and profits.

He did it by accident but he had done it all on his own accord; by his own free will.

He was a great guy and knew a lot about retail and about business in general.

But…

He, seemingly, expected nothing of anyone.

And, they all lived up to his expectations!

That was a terrifyingly accurate admission and moment of truth and reflection.

The brutal acknowledgement and the stunning clarity of that moment steered him onto a new path where even fear of the unknown couldn’t stop him from altering the course of his life for the better.

By the way, our guy is not unusual.

This same problem is plaguing lots of business owners out there today.
No performance expectations – no prosperity.

Or, perhaps, it would be more accurate to say no accountability – no prosperity.

It seems so much easier to handle things yourself than to delegate, train, set performance expectations, hold people accountable, manage performance, etc.

But, in fact, it is the worst possible course of action an entrepreneur can take.

It’s the worst possible remedy for any malady of the entrepreneur.

The saying “Git ‘er done.” doesn’t mean you should get it all done by yourself.

Certainly, not if you don’t have to.

How long can that go on?

At what point is it no longer feasible?

The small to medium retail business cannot get bigger and better with only one person thinking and problem solving – even a very important, very smart and very dedicated person – while everyone else just wanders around doing tasks and other little jobs but never contributing in a major way.

You can’t smash targets to smithereens when you don’t really expect to, or plan to.

And, you can’t smoke the numbers when you haven’t even set them and haven’t developed a compensation plan to reward that accomplishment.

You can’t pull, drag and stretch the very best out of all of your people when you have your little head – albeit a very important head – buried in some inconsequential task or the other.

Wouldn’t you agree?

Anyway, back to our guy’s story.

Here’s what happened next.

He first carved out some time to figure out what his new understanding meant in terms of his business, his people, etc.

You remember the monkeys, right? Well, clearly, they had to go and he made short work of that!

He realized that things would have to change – and change big time – for him to get where he wanted to be.

However, because he was not a stupid man he realized, very quickly that he was going to need some help.

So he set out to find some help.

He sought wisdom.

He talked to a lot of people, read books, solicited advice from other business owners.

He spent time reading and re-reading his most valuable and important resources.

He listened to DVD’s on Sales and Performance Management, Hiring and Training, Leadership, Time Management and Communication, and myriad other subjects that were to prove instrumental in his business, and life, turn around.

In the final analysis, as the result of his studies, he determined there was one thing he could hang his hat on – individual performance.

The performance of his staff members would be the key to the success of his business and it was really the only thing that mattered.

You may wonder what actions he actually took with regard to his store staff…

Well, he explained everything to his teams.

He communicated well and often and kept them in the loop as much as he possibly could.

He set targets for each individual in his stores.

They were tough targets – not out of reach, of course because we already told you he was not a stupid man – but tough enough to make people strive for the glory of achievement, the thunder of applause and the halo of recognition.

He followed resource materials that had been written by successful retailers with much experience.

He had sought wisdom and he was not disappointed.

Most of his people accepted the targets readily because, at the same time, a new compensation plan was unveiled.

It was a compensation plan designed to work hand in hand with the new targets.

Of course, some staff members liked the old way of just doing tasks and not actively selling to anyone and, eventually, they had to move on and find new employment more suited to them.

Bye-bye…we really liked you but seeing as you are

L-A-Z-Y

and have to leave, we hope you don’t let

the door hit you in the butt on the way out!

But the majority of his associates – particularly the go-getters and the ones who saw that the rewards were not only fair but really rather good – stayed and prospered.

This was now a place for winners, for performers.
They liked that.

There is a saying that goes ‘to whom much is given, much is expected’ (author unknown).

And, it applies to the relationship between employer and employee.

If I, as the employee, am given great rewards for my performance then my performance, the fruits of which accrue to my employer as well, should also be great.

This is only fair.

Our guy had to continue to learn and grow to fully understand how this new way of doing things was going to work out.

He had to make sure he was hiring performance oriented people who had customer service top of mind also.

He had to train them, manage them, communicate with them and just generally be good at driving the business, setting the direction and helping everyone by removing obstacles.

He needed enthusiastic, engaged employees with the business top of mind at all times.

He became an extraordinary leader who developed people to become even better than he was (yes, that is a great thing to do and you should do it too) and his business yielded enough profit for him to realize his dreams.

Now he has considerably more time to spend with his family and friends.

In fact, on most holidays you’ll find him quietly celebrating his good fortune looking out over the picturesque lake that his summer house is situated on.

Every time I think of his success story, I feel uplifted and grateful that I know him and was able to have a part in it.

Really, this guy was on the verge of disaster, though he didn’t know how close he was.

His stores were going to close and he was going to get some ridiculously low number of pennies on the dollar for his inventory, his fixtures, and any other assets.

His real estate was going to go on the block and be sold for a song. All of his staff would be unemployed. Things would go from bad to worse.

It didn’t seem fair because he was a really good guy who meant well and worked his fingers to the bone.

But, he didn’t know how to manage the business he was in. He didn’t know what he didn’t know.

Oh sure, he knew real estate and he could ferret out decent locations and establish nice looking stores.

He was a skilled buyer, knowing what merchandise to pick out when he was on his unavoidably expensive buying trips.

He had the gift of the gab and knew, very well, how to talk to the investors to get his next store, and his next and so on.

But, eventually, the wheels were going to fall off because the stores were not performing.

They just weren’t.

And by that, of course, we mean that the people working in the stores were not performing.

You do not, and cannot, continue on in a retail business if the stores are not performing.

It is only a matter of time until the wolf is howling at the door.

This is true of any business.

And so, you must agree, that it was extremely fortunate for him that he was stopped by that one bumbling staff member that day who started saying “blah, blah, blah” because that’s what finally woke him up; made him face his situation and forced him to make changes.

And, as they say, the rest is history.

Do you know anyone who is in the same predicament?

There are quite a few of them, actually.

Just meander through any shopping mall or center will show you who is winning and who isn’t. Or, in some cases…who is hiding their imminent demise really well.

Now, what if I told you that our guys end result – the extra revenue and profits, leading to the great lifestyle, the summer house, and extra time, etc.- wasn’t all that difficult to achieve?

Or, that we basically bottled the formula and are making it available to other retail business owners.

That was just a figure of speech. It‘s not really in a bottle…it comes in the form of Success Guides, Tools and DVD’s.

Every bit of the Retail Business Academy is highly relevant to everything a retailer does every day. It’s full of books, tools and DVD’s…and tons more stuff (detailed below) that you’ll pour over every day.

Among the materials packed in this prodigious resource you’ll find some serious retail operations management advice and instruction; the kind of stuff he was very much in need of.

He was like a sponge and he absorbed it all.

He got all the retail math, metrics and Key Performance Indicator knowledge he was ever going to need. You too, unless you’re planning on a career in high finance.

You’ll get a simple…and I do mean simple…retail employee evaluation system.

Maybe we should have put it in a black and yellow cover and called it retail employee evaluation system for Dummies…but we didn’t.

We just called it ‘I Succeed’.

It’s quick and easy to use and the reason for that is…duh! because people need quick and easy evaluations …. often. Save the big long, drawn out piece of work for the end of the year and the Human Resources people.

There’s a Store Manager’s Organizer/Planner to keep retail managers organized in a way that no other organizer can because it’s made for a retailer.

The first clue is that appointment slots don’t end at 5:00 p.m.!​​​​​​​

And, you can print as many copies as you need for your Store Managers…every year.
There’s some strong advice and warnings related to interviewing, hiring and training.

Our guy learned all about canned questions.

Some people are veteran interviewees and they can skillfully answer any canned question because they have heard them so many times before and they know which answers work.

Of course, there are never any guarantees when hiring.

We have all been surprised from time to time but there certainly are ways to get just a little more information that will help you understand the person who will be in your stores working with your customers.

Long story short…avoid canned questions.

The resource material that our guy used laid out the real questions – the questions that will force the candidate to reach down and come up with a genuine answer that is unique to him or her…not just what they think you want to hear.

For your listening pleasure, there’s a collection of DVD’s with hard hitting information on just about every retail subject you can think of.

They come in digital format, too.

In the Retailer’s Guide to Emotional Hot Buttons, there’s some mighty interesting information about pushing emotional hot buttons to sell more merchandise.

Now, that’s a good read!

And there’s a book about characteristics and ‘ways’ or ‘secrets’ of a highly successful retail manager.

This one’s worth its weight in gold and our guy studied it until he pretty much had it memorized.

The Retail Business Academy is meant for every

retail business owner and retail manager.

In fact, this story had a happily-ever-after ending because the wisdom our guy sought came from the Retail Business Academy.

What you need to do to avoid the situation our guy found himself in early on, and to make sure you prosper the way our guy did later on, is get yourself a Platinum Membership in the Retail Business Academy.

For those of you who want to share information and offer the very best chance of growth and development to your people, get them their own membership in the Retail Business Academy.

Invest in their future to give them the skills to invest in yours. Right now, with our buy one membership, get five free, it’s easy and painless to upgrade the skills and capabilities of your entire workforce.

Let’s get started. You need everything you’re going to see from here on down. ​​​​​​​
Here’s the long list of everything you will be able to access with your trial of the Platinum Private Membership in the Retail Business Academy

First, let us tell you that absolutely everything that DMSRetail offers for sale, is included in the Retail Business Academy.

Plus, there are many more products included that are not available for sale anywhere.

And, we’re growing it every day making your Platinum Private Membership more and more valuable.

We’re working day and night to get new stuff uploaded for you.

You’re going to have access to a wealth of different things, such as…

Success Guides

Tools

Study Courses

Performance Solutions

Information

Tips

Advice

World Retail News

Gems

How-To’s

DVD’s

PowerPoint Presentations

Pearls of Wisdom

Forms

Checklists

Videos

Consultants

Instructors

Motivational Quotes

and other seriously good stuff

You’ll access all of these things on the membership site, through our Success Guides and Tools, such as:

Retail Math – Made Simple, 4th Edition

Winning at Store Management

Managing for Higher Retail Success

22 Ways of Highly Successful Retail Managers

Customer Service Fundamentals

Retailer’s Guide to Emotional Hot Buttons

‘I Succeed’ Retail Employee Evaluation System

The DMSRetailer – Store Manager’s Organizer/Planner

And, our Self Development Programs:

Retail Selling Skills & Customer Experience Fundamentals

Retail Cashier Performance

Store Management for Maximum Success

Retail District Management

Retail Operations Management

Retail Category Management

Our Packages:

The Starter Bundle

The Super Retail Success Bundle

The Retail Success Accelerator – Store Performance Solution

The Ultimate Retail Success Collection

A multitude of Reports and Forms:

‘Daily News’ Guide for the Cash Desk

Interview Questions

Hiring Tip Sheet

Balanced Score Cards

Weekly Employee Check Up

Monthly Employee Evaluation

Quarterly Employee Evaluation

Annual Employee Evaluation

Store Manager Job Description

Assistant Manager Job Description

Mystery Shopping Report

Backroom Communication Board

Store Manager’s Keys to Success

District Manager’s Framework for Success

And many more being added daily

Sales & Marketing Tips:

Selling Steps

75 Open Ended Questions

Social Media Instructions for Retailers – Facebook, Google+, Linked In and more

Compensation Plans – DMSRetail Proprietary Pay for Performance Plans

Pay for Performance – General

Non – Monetary Reward Systems

Guidance to Inspire:

11 Leadership Principles

Integrity in Management

Managing Up, Down and Sideways

District Manager’s Creed

Essential Reading for Retailers

Success Stories

Motivational Quotes

The Summer House

It’s Just Common Sense, Really

Webinars:

Success Tips & Strategies

The Store Management Process

Get 25% More out of Store Visits

Open To Buy

Retail Math Made Simple

Category Management

Managing by Numbers

Add-On Selling

Legacy Strategy

33% Increase Formula

7 Top Tips to Maximize Your Retail Profits

Retailer’s Guide to Online Marketing eBook & Video Course, ​​​​​​​which is your guide to harnessing the power of social media to build your brand, drive traffic, and generate sales​​​​​​​

You simply sign in to your membership account at the Retail Business Academy and watch/listen to the webinar at absolutely no additional cost. It’s included with your membership.Back to the stuff you get…

‘How- to’ for People Development:

Sample Coaching Conversations

Disciplinary Actions

Supporting & Challenging Your Performers

Career Path Development

Ideal Candidate Profile Development

Performance Management

**Discounts on Workshop Attendance – Here are the workshops currently being offered:

Everyone in Retail Management seems to understand that Conversion is HUGE….so why do I keep having to go searching for a sales associate to sell something to me?

It’s a great question.

Recently, I arranged some focus group meetings, with Regional Managers, of small and medium sized chains, to answer questions about various retail topics.

Before the meetings I had done some ‘shopping’ or, you may call them mystery shops, to get an idea of the way these Regional Managers were running their stores. I wasn’t in any position to judge them, nor did I want to.

But, I did need to understand a bit about their perspective on retail operations.

I’ve chosen two examples to tell you about today because the importance ofConversioncannot be overstated, particularly during busy times when selling steps often go out the window due to increased traffic.

One Regional Manager went on, at length, singing the praises of a particular store team in his region. He said they were his highest volume store, they never missed target, they functioned like a well-oiled machine and had true team spirit.

To his mind, they were, indeed, an incredible team.

Well, it just so happens that my visit to that particular store was among the worst I experienced during my work on this project.

The store is about 5,000 sq. feet, free standing, large front entrance with the cash desk situated quite close to the front entrance doors.

They sell educational materials and toys for children.

I entered the store and spent a full 15 minutes walking around the store, stopping to look at and touch 20 different items in different locations within the store.

There were three staff members and 3 to 4 customers, including me, at any given time.

As I approached the front of the store, just as I was passing the cash desk…clearly walking in the direction of the doors to leave…a young man at the cash desk said “hello”.

I said “hello” pleasantly and kept walking.

The other store used in this example was, again, touted as a fine example of the stores in a particular region.

It is a women’s apparel store serving a target of 35-55 year old women. The price point is moderate. It’s an indoor, covered mall store; about 3,000 sq. feet with the cash desk situated at the very back near the fitting rooms.

On the day of my shop, the store was very clean and well merchandised. It really did look amazing and I can see that plenty of customers would be drawn in.

There were two staff members on duty and both were at the cash desk. I was the only customer. They did not greet me.

I’m not even sure they saw me enter, although I made no attempt to sneak in.

I began looking around and touching merchandise – taking a couple of items off the racks to look at. I even tried a jacket on and sought out a mirror to have a look.

After 8 minutes, a sales associate approached me, greeted me and began a conversation about current promotions.

We had a nice chat and then I continued looking around and, after about another 5 minutes, I left the store.

I should mention, at DMSRetail, we do not advocate anyone trying to catch store personnel doing something wrong. In fact, we generally advise against surprise visits altogether.

A planned visit does much more for the morale and professional development of the Manager and team.

However, as a Regional/District Manager you’ve got to be on top of how your stores perform. Clearly, conversion cannot be as high as it should be in these stores in the example.

Two fairly senior Regional Managers were telling me things that I knew were not completely true. They were generalising and it was surely costing them sales dollars.

For the sceptics out there, we’ve seen enough to know that these were not isolated incidents.

Conversion is critical.

You won’t convert at a high rate if shoppers are left to wander around by themselves. Well, except in a convenience store or grocery store…

If the shoppers who are left to wander around doconvert to buyers, there’s a really good chance that theamount of the saleand the number ofunits per transactionwill not be what it could be.

Focus onconversionand prove that you

knowwhat is happening. Don’t justthink you know.

There’s too much as stake!

For those of you looking ahead… Don’t miss this webinar:

14 Things You’ll Learn When You Attend the Webinar

Online Marketing for Retailers

Tuesday, December 6, 2016

1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. EST (6:00 p.m. London)

All Registrants will get the recording and slides.

What is social media and why do you need it?

15 facts that make social media an absolute necessity for your offline and/or online business.

What exactly is a social media page?

The most important step to take before building your pages.

The exact questions you should be able to answer in order to choose the right approach for your business.

How to avoid getting lost when you are creating your page?

Tips on how to create the perfect profile.

Effective techniques to make your activities more productive.

Step by step process to maximise your visibility.

How to correctly use the 3 core posting activities that will virally spread the word quickly.

Meet the marketing weapons you can utilise.

Important tips that will get the most out of your Profile Settings that will boost your search engine power.

Work with To Do Lists – Daily or weekly, a ‘to do’ list must be created. It must include only those things that you have deemed to be priorities based on your top success factors. Others may inadvertently influence your ‘to do’ list unless you are very careful. Just remember whose ‘to do’ list it is.

Why is it important to use a to do list?

We can’t necessarily keep everything in our memory and, even if we could, why waste the brain space when you can jot it down on paper? Seeing the list of things written down on paper helps you to prioritize. Any possible duplication of effort can be seen at a glance. You get the satisfaction of striking things off the list as they are accomplished.

Appointments – Make a plan for your day, week or month as if you are creating appointments. That is to say, if you plan to do something at 9:30 a.m., and have scheduled that activity as a 45 minute appointment, then do it in the 45 minutes you have scheduled it for. Appointments should have a start and finish time and cannot be left open ended.

Reduce time allotments – Any activity, task, project or meeting can easily expand to use up all of the time allotted to it. For this reason, schedule on the short side. Things tend to be handled more efficiently and effectively when a tighter time frame is in place.

Organize – In retail, you must be highly organized. You need a system for reducing clutter (of your space and your mind) and for easy retrieval of documents and information. If your life is full of clutter, your brain is confused and is probably actually preventing you from getting things done.

Make a point of regularly clearing out junk that you don’t need or use anymore. Stuff at home and work should be thrown out if it is not useful to you. You should actually schedule this ‘clutter removal’ appointment once a month or even as often as once a week.

Delegate – Presumably you have competent people working for you so you should be able to delegate according to their particular strengths and availability. Even if you need to break a larger project down into smaller, more manageable pieces it will help you and it will help in development your people.

You’ll need to consider these things when deciding what to delegate:

-Is it a repetitive task?

-If a bad decision is made regarding this issue – what is the impact? Is it easily reversed? Will it negatively affect others? Will it be expensive, for the company, to correct or reverse?

Say “no” – Although it is not always possible, you need to know how to determine what you should say “no” to. If someone asks you to take on a project or task that will not necessarily advance your cause – or contribute to your top success factors – then you need to say “no”. If you find there is no alternative but to accept the project or task, then you need to look for items on your to do list that can be moved to another time slot or ‘appointment time’ or delegated.

Remain flexible and reschedule often – You will need to allow for the unexpected. The idea of planning your work and working your plan is a very good one, but sometimes you will just have to be flexible. So, when the need arises, be prepared to reschedule.

Allow yourself some scheduled unproductive time – It doesn’t sound right but it’s important. This is what will keep you going. We can’t have every minute of every day pinned down – sometimes we have to just enjoy ….whatever.

Don’t let what you can’t do stop you from doing what you can do – Sometimes it’s impossible to embark on a big project. Maybe you have limited resources; maybe the expected outcome is still a bit uncertain. For whatever reason, you just know you can’t get the big project done. You can, however, start on small parts of that big project – the parts that you are able to get done and that will be useful when it comes time to get the big project underway. In fact, if you work at it that way you might just find that the big project has suddenly taken care of itself.

Sleep early, wake up early and take good care of your health– The early bird gets the worm! In our case, the early riser gets more done while they are still energetic. It’s a great feeling to know that some people are just lounging around – still in their beds – while you have already accomplished half of your to do list.

An important but often overlooked aspect of the sales process, add-on’s are seen by most salespeople as a burden on the customer. In other cases, salespeople are either indifferent to or even scared of suggesting add-on’s because of the fear of losing the sale.

Contrary to that fear, the best time to suggest an add-on is right after the main sale is closed. The fact that the customer has already said yes indicates that s/he saw the value in your offering, chances of them changing their mind because of an add-on suggestion is slim. Far from it. in fact, studies show that in most cases, provided that the add-on conversation is designed and sold properly, the additional item has enriched the satisfaction they got out of their main purchase.

The benefit of add-on sales on store profitability is tremendous. That is the reason some retail experts suggest that UPT (units per transaction) should be a prime measurement of store productivity. We don’t want to get into a lengthy KPI discussion here, but everything else being equal, you can make a huge difference in your profitability and overall success by increasing your UPT. Most of the increase usually comes from successful add-on sales.

To recap:

1. Contrary to popular belief, immediately after the sale is the best time to sell add-on’s.

2. Increases profitability dramatically.

3.Extends the satisfaction value of the purchase.

4. Your customer will appreciate you for it.

So, make it an agenda item in your next sales meeting and discuss the add-on products, the sales process, the expectations from each staff member and count those extra profit dollars pouring in.